Fix Uneven Resource Distribution: Future with Drone

Future with drone

Drone has enormous possibility.

You may imagine that all things you want come in front of your door delivered by drone. Or you may already enjoy taking breath-taking photos of nature using drone.

But, the possibilities are not limited in those ways. Drone can save your life by delivering inevitable things when you need.

What direction is desirable way to develop drone technology? How should we shape drone technology?

In this blog, I would like to suggest local authority's importance in regulation and promotion of drone based on current experiment and business by start-up.

What is Drone?

Cambridge dictionary says Drone is "an aircraft without a pilot that is controlled by someone on the ground, used especially as a hobby". Though this is rough definition, in fact, drones are very diverse in their size, flight speed, number of rotors, payload, flight duration and so on.

This diversity means that drone can be used for various purposes. From technological perspective, the purposes decide the direction of development.

For example, a type of drone's payload reaches as much as 6kg, but can only continue flying 16 minutes with payload. Another type of drone can fly more than 45 minutes.

Who Benefits from Drone Technology?

Two examples for saving life

It's based on the purpose and area that who can benefit from drone.

If you are living in inner city, you may not be able to receive benefit from drone. But, if you are living in rural area of Rwanda, the benefit is enormous.

Zipline is a powerful start-up that make the most of drone's ability in Africa. They deliver brood and other medical essentials to rural area of Rwanda by drones. Rwanda's road infrastructure is still under construction. The situation costs many hours for delivering to the destination. On the contrary, Zipline's drone can deliver quickly, and airway needs almost no infrastructure. Since Zipline's drone drop the parcel at the destination, the destination needs no landing facility.

Delivering AED is another example, which may concern more with who are living in the city.

Automated external defibrillator (AED) is essential facility to save a life when someone onset cardiac arrest. To avoid fatal ending, it is necessary to use AED as soon as possible. However, there are few houses that installed AED.

A study of delivering AED by drone when someone called ambulance with cardiac arrest was conducted in the Gothenburg city area in western Sweden. The results was that in 11 of 12 cases, an AED was successfully delivered. In more than half cases, drone arrived before the ambulance.

These ways of using drone must save many lives.

Fix Resource Distribution

I can say that drone can fix uneven distribution of resources by their agility. The medical resources tend to concentrated in the capital or large city. If there were enough infrastructure, delivery could be done rapidly. But infrastructure is either tend to be well maintained near large city. Similar situation must be seen in many resources. Those uneven distribution prevent residents from accessing resources they need.

If drone deliver resources rapidly, uneven distribution of resources can be fixed to some extent.

Close looking at AED, you will immediately understand the uneven distribution. The first picture is distribution of AED around Brighton, UK. The second picture is around London on the same scale. (Citing from AED map by Heart Safe)

This difference influenced on survival rates after cardiac arrest. Such uneven distribution must be fixed.

International Regulation

In spite of the potential, drone has not so influenced on society. One of the reasons was regulation to drone.

The main concerning point of regulation is safety. Human boarding aircraft systems are strictly regulated by air traffic control.

Drones are commonly regulated by the same authority with manned aircraft systems. Safety is for three objects; risk to other air space users such as air plane, person and properties on the ground.

These risks vary highly depending on contexts; area, operation and purpose.

If the area locates close to airport, the risk of other air space user is high. If the area is inner city, the drone must take care of human and properties on the ground. If the area is rural place, the risk might me minimum.

A new regulation for drones has came into force after long discussion along with EU regulation.

As a result of long discussion, the regulation divided drone using into three categories; Open with low risk, no involvement of aviation authority; Specific with medium risk, approved by Specific Operations Risk Assessment (SORA); Certified with high risk, certified operator and certified drones.

This regulation can be said fundamental agreement in European countries.

Who Shapes Drones Future?

The most important thing in developing drone technology is requirement from the area. Technological development will be directed by the needs, purpose and the risk in the districts.

For example, Zipline reduced taking off and landing by the lacking of facility. Also, they developed to be maintained easily in "Appropriate technology" by modularization.　

Delivering in inner city, the technology should be developed in more accurate arriving to destination and be safer.

To conclude, the role of local government will be more important especially in developed countries. Firstly, the benefits are varied by districts. Secondly, risk is also determined by the context. Finally, local government is the best authority to regulate, promote, and collect voices from people.

Generally, the area with not resource-concentrating receive benefit from this technology.

Though regulation at national level is necessary, but drones can continue flying not so long hour. It means, the service area will be limited.

Historically, regulations for drones have been made in national and international discussion. The fundamental regulation has already been. It is time to discuss locally.